Welcome

Welcome to the POZ/AIDSmeds Community Forums, a round-the-clock discussion area for people with HIV/AIDS, their friends/family/caregivers, and
others concerned about HIV/AIDS. Click on the links below to browse our various forums; scroll down for a glance at the most recent posts; or join in the
conversation yourself by registering on the left side of this page.

Privacy Warning: Please realize that these forums are open to all, and are fully searchable via Google and other search engines. If you are HIV positive
and disclose this in our forums, then it is almost the same thing as telling the whole world (or at least the World Wide Web). If this concerns you, then do not use a
username or avatar that are self-identifying in any way. We do not allow the deletion of anything you post in these forums, so think before you post.

The information shared in these forums, by moderators and members, is designed to complement, not replace, the relationship between an individual and his/her own
physician.

All members of these forums are, by default, not considered to be licensed medical providers. If otherwise, users must clearly define themselves as such.

Forums members must behave at all times with respect and honesty. Posting guidelines, including time-out and banning policies, have been established by the moderators
of these forums. Click here for “Am I Infected?” posting guidelines. Click here for posting guidelines pertaining to all other POZ/AIDSmeds community forums.

We ask all forums members to provide references for health/medical/scientific information they provide, when it is not a personal experience being discussed. Please
provide hyperlinks with full URLs or full citations of published works not available via the Internet. Additionally, all forums members must post information which are
true and correct to their knowledge.

Finished Reading This? You can collapse this or any other box on this page by clicking the
symbol in each box.

Welcome to Am I Infected

IMPORTANT UPDATE
Posted Tuesday, August 28, 2012

Welcome to the "Am I Infected?" POZ forum.

New members -- those who have posted three or fewer messages -- are permitted to post questions and responses, free of charge (make them count!). Ongoing participation in the "Am I Infected?" forum -- posting more than three questions or responses -- requires a paid subscription.

A seven-day subscription
is $9.99, a 30-day subscription is $14.99 and a 90-day subscription is $24.99.

Anyone who needs to post more than three messages in the "Am I Infected?" forum -- including past, present and future POZ Forums members -- will need to subscribe, with
secure payments made via PayPal.

There will be no charge to continue reading threads in the
"Am I Infected?" forum, nor will there be a charge for participating
in any of the Main Forums; Meds, Mind, Body & Benefits; and Off Topic
Forums. Similarly, all POZ and AIDSmeds pages,
including our "How is HIV
Transmitted?" and "Am I Infected? (A
Guide to Testing for HIV)" lessons, will remain accessible to
all.

NOTE: HIV testing questions will still need to be posted in the "Am I
Infected?" forum; attempts to post HIV symptoms or testing questions in any other forums will be considered violations of our rules of membership and subject to time-outs and permanent bans.

To learn how to upgrade your Forums account
to participate beyond three posts in the "Am I Infected?" Forum, please click here.

Thank you for your understanding
and future support of the best online support service for people living with,
affected by and at risk for HIV.

Author
Topic: Incident with CSW - I'm very worried (Read 2245 times)

Back on Feb 7th this year, I had an encounter with a female CSW in Myanmar. I picked her up from a nightclub and we went to my hotel. I received unprotected oral for 3 or 4 minutes or so, then I donned a condom and rubbed water based lube onto my penis. I entered her vagina from behind. After a couple of minutes I reached down to check the condom was intact and received a smear of blood on my hand - I washed it off quickly under the tap and went back to finish off, with the condom still on. I did not notice any smear of blood on the condom while in the bathroom. It was intact, but as I was removing it, I clumsily managed to press the outer exposed surface of the condom onto the rim of my glans and the skin behind it (I am circumcised). I don't think it had any contact with my urethra. I quickly washed the area throughly with hot water and shampoo.About 6 days after this, I developed a strange flu like feeling. It seemed like I did not have a noticeable fever, but I felt weak with general muscle aches for the whole day - a strange 'fuzzy' feeling. There was also a mild bout of diharrea. I felt better the next day, but started to wonder if this was a manifestation of so-called ARS. I'm very anxious about this.About 4 weeks later I started to develop sinus issues, which have been intermittent. In mid April, I developed a mild sore throat, which seemed to drag on a bit longer than expected - about 10 days before it cleared. In late April, I began to experience acute anxiety after mulling over my exposure risks. Shortly after, my lymph nodes in the armpits were aching and have continued to be tender of late also in my groin and one on my lowest rib on the right side. And occasional bouts of malaise/ fatigue. I also have watery eyes at times. I also experienced an episode of athlete's foot between the 2nd and 3rd toe on my right foot - another thing that has not happened before – healed up now thankfully.I am wondering is I have become infected with HIV? The sex I was having was supposed to be 'safe', but it went badly wrong. I suppose I am clear of the 3 month testing window and can proceed with a test. Something is holding me back - I expect that it is that I am dreading the wrong result. I am grateful for any advice you may have to offer regarding chances of infection and the ominous ARS symtoms I experienced post exposure.

Rod is correct . You had protected anal or vaginal sex and that was not a risk for HIV . Getting a blow job is not a risk for HIV . Condoms are not infectious for HIV the instant that they are exposed to changes in temperature and PH levels outside the human body on withdrawal . No one has been infected from the act of removing a condom and you will not be the first .

Here's what you need to know in order to avoid hiv infection:

You need to be using condoms for anal or vaginal intercourse, every time, no exceptions until such time as you are in a securely monogamous relationship where you have both tested for ALL sexually transmitted infections together.

To agree to have unprotected intercourse is to consent to the possibility of being infected with an STI. Sex without a condom lasts only a matter of minutes, but hiv is forever.

Have a look through the condom and lube links in my signature line so you can use condoms with confidence.

Although you did not have a risk and do not need to test for this specific incident , anyone who is sexually active should be having a full sexual health care check-up, including but not limited to hiv testing, at least once a year and more often if unprotected intercourse occurs.

If you aren't already having regular, routine check-ups, now is the time to start. As long as you make sure condoms are being used for intercourse, you can fully expect your routine hiv tests to return with negative results.

Don't forget to always get checked for all the other sexually transmitted infections as well, because they are MUCH easier to transmit than hiv. Some of the other STIs can be present with no obvious symptoms, so the only way to know for sure is to test.

Use condoms for anal or vaginal intercourse, correctly and consistently, and you will avoid hiv infection. It really is that simple!

Hi Jeff,I trust you had a happy independence day.There are a couple of points I should clarify regarding my situation.1. I probably had the menstrual blood on my fingers for almost 5 minutes before I noticed it AND I probably had direct contact with the lady in question's genitals as I was checking my condom integrity. Could this constitute a risk?2. I was only circumcised when I was 22/23, therefore the glans would not have 'keritinized' as it would have if i had this procedure at an earlier age.3. Although I did not see any menstrual blood on the condom, there must have been some residue as she was obviously at either a late or early stage of menstruation. Menstrual blood is regarded as a particularly infectious fluid with very high VLs.4. My sinuses and lower part of my my nostrils have been irritated on and off (mostly ON) since mid March. This is a real concern - the ENT specialist didnot see a sign of infection - perhaps a reaction to acute HIV infection?5. My 6 day post exposure reaction still haunts me. It is within the ARS timeframe (1 week to 3 weeks) that I have read about on HIV websites.

I did have the condom on from before the start to the end of vaginal intercourse and it did not break, that is a definite fact, but the contact of the condomwith my glans and the tender skin just behind was not just a case of glancing contact. It was kind of pushed in towards the skin as I fumbled with the removal. The ring is quite tight on the condoms (Durex) available in Asia.Off on vacation tomorrow...hope I can keep myself in a calm frame of mind until my scheduled medical test in September.

I would also like to commend your superb website. I've learned a lot about HIV and other peoples' concerns.

I do wish I could understand the process by which the HIV virus deactivates upon exposure to the outer body environment, especially as the fluids must be more than one virus particle diameter in thickness. The virus underneath the surface of the fluid on the condom would not be exposed - only the outermost. Or am I mistaken? Look forward to your answer.

Your not going to like my answer . You did not have a risk for HIV . If you cant accept our assessment then go test and see if a negative result will ease your mind . Here is the information you requested about HIV .

Hi again. Sorry to report my chronic rhinosinusitis has continued for 3 months. Worse than that, I noticed several dark lesions on my back and lower abdomen - looking remarkably like KS. I last tested negative and now feel I must have seroconverted June / July last year after a not so smart drunken encounter with a CSW. Events a little hazy, but It was unprotected receptive oral and protected vaginal (a must for no matter how drunk I am). Also briefly licked her clitoris only - no blood and didn't dip into vagina. Also rubbed lube into her which may have been before wearing the condom. Had a sore throat a couple of weeks later with pus and a fever, went away after antibiotics administered so didn't associate it with ARS. Anyway, I've had unprotected vaginal sex mAybe twice with the wife since then once not too long after possible seroconversion. OMG!!! Infecting her would be so destroying. She does not deserve my wretchedness. And my son...worried he could somehow have become infected with this virulent CRF strain here also somehow, someway. I really have destroyed everything...Will test as soon as I can. No choice now. I need to face up to my actions.

Sorry, I meant to say I last tested negative in November 2012. And had no sex of any kind until May 2013. Not easy writing with an iPhone. If it is KS, it would be a scorching pace from protected vaginal sex to an AIDS diagnosis. F*ck's sakes!!! I'm not being a drama queen. I'm totally lost. Just need to talk to someone to prevent melt down.

Dear Mr Jeff,I want to report my HIV test from last week, that I could not bear to look at until tonight. It was negative as you predicted - which amazed me with my weird symptoms. Thank you so much for your support and guidance. I want to repay you somehow. PLease let me know how I can do this.Eternal gratitude.